Not What It Seems
by Desastrus
Summary: An unidentified man forces Mr Dickenson to write a letter, inviting the Beybladers for a one week cruise prior to the fourth World Championships. Unaware of the danger, they accept. What's going to happen? Rewrite of Stab My Back.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: **Beyblade belongs to the awesometastic Aoki Takao

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_DATE: 5__th__ January _

_LOCATION: Unknown_

Dust motes swirled in the bright afternoon light that spilled in through the bay windows of a large study. Glossy mahogany shelves, filled with various leather-bound books and folders, lined the walls while a matching desk sat at one end of the room. The lone occupant of the room, a middle-aged man with graying black hair was standing by this desk, studying a large map tacked to the wall behind it. Eight push pins were stuck at various parts of the map, marking the locations where the qualifying rounds for that year's Beyblade World Championships were held. Another set of pins held up pictures of the winning team of each qualifier.

The man studied each photo, sneering at the triumphant faces of the teens. He paused at the one tacked to Japan, his sneer becoming more pronounced as he stared at the grinning face of the three time world champion, Tyson Kinomiya who was holding up his beyblade to the photographer, its bitchip gleaming as the camera flashed. The poor boy didn't know how powerful his bitbeast, or any other bitbeast for that matter, really was. None of the teens knew. If they did, they wouldn't have wasted the spirits' powers on such childish games.

_That was the price of ignorance_, he thought, shaking his head. But no matter, the bitbeasts powers will not be put to waste any longer once they fell into his hands. His plan to obtain them was already in motion and speaking of plans, he had to check up on one of his subordinates.

He dialled the phone, long fingers drumming the surface of the desk as the line connected.

"Hey boss," a voice greeted him airily.

"Mission status?"

The boy tch-ed irritably. "What do you think? It was successful, obviously."

The man chuckled at the sulky tone, unbothered by the lack of respect. The boy was…ah, volatile at best. Treating him with hostility would just cause him to blow up. "Good, good. I knew you were the best person for this job, Rook."

"Mmhmm," Rook responded, sounding less irritated and the man knew his compliment had placated the boy. _So easy_, he thought, smiling, looking rather snake-like as he fiddled with the gold cufflink on his sleeve.

"Bring that Dickenson here asap. I need his…ah, assistance to write a letter."

Rook chuckled darkly at his choice of words. "Sure thing, boss! Just leave it all to me," he said before cutting the line. The man returned the phone to its cradle, absently adjusting the cuffs of his charcoal suit in satisfaction.

_Phase II: complete._

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_DATE: 12__th__ January  
_

_LOCATION: Bakuten, Japan_

"Hey T-man, a letter arrived for you," Ryu Kinomiya told his grandson as he walked through the back door into the kitchen, a stack of envelopes in his hand. He held the top one out to his grandson who was busy shovelling breakfast into his mouth. "It's from the BBA," he added when the boy didn't respond as he heaped more scrambled egg on his plate.

Ryu smirked when his eyes bulged, only to recoil when Tyson exclaimed.

"Gimfheetumeh!" Tyson said, spraying scrambled eggs to all over the place as he leaned across the table to snatch the envelope out of his hands. Ryu shook his head in disgust as he watched the younger Kinomiya rip the letter open, not caring about bits of egg and spittle sticking to his mouth and cheeks.

"Dear BBA Revolution," he began. "Having made through the qualifying rounds last month-"

.

_LOCATION: White Tiger Hills, China_

"-and thus making it into the World Championships," Mariah read, a similar piece of paper in hand, her pink hair ribbon swaying gently in the breeze. She was sitting on the grass under a large tree while the rest of the White Tigers were scattered around her, listening intently.

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_LOCATION: Moscow, Russia_

"Your team have been invited for a _compulsory_ one week cruise with the rest of the participating beybladers-," Tala muttered, making a face at 'compulsory'. Similar looks were reflected on the other of the Blitzkrieg Boys' faces.

_One week with the rest of the bladers? Ugh._

.

_LOCATION: New York, USA_

"The ship will be picking you up at Tokyo Harbour on the 1st of February," Emily announced to her team. She shot the boys irritated looks when they didn't respond, too absorbed in their video game.

.

_LOCATION: Athens, Greece_

"The aim of this trip is to strengthen the friendship bonds between the beybladers-,"

Garland read. Brooklyn, who was standing in the balcony with a sparrow perched on his finger, smiled at this.

.

_LOCATION: Valais, Switzerland_

"-and also for the emerging teams to make their debut," an unfamiliar blond girl read, looking up to smile at her teammates- all girls. She was the only normal looking one in the group. One girl had a multi-coloured fringe, one a goth and the last one looked like someone out of the Arabian Nights.

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_LOCATION: Madrid, Spain_

"It is an all-expenses paid trip and please send the forms attached as soon as possible." Julia watched as Raul upended the envelope, causing stack of papers to fall out.

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_LOCATION: Bucharest, Romania_

"We look forward to hear from you soon. Regards, Stanley Dickenson, BBA Chairman," another unfamiliar person, a guy with black hair finished, flashing a smirk at his team members; two girls and a boy.

.

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_DATE: 18__th__ January_

_LOCATION: Unknown_

Somewhere in the world, an old man lay on narrow bed, curled into a foetal position. He had the appearance of someone who had lost a lot of weight in a short amount of time, and his usually rosy visage now held an unhealthy gray pallor. Angry red welts covered his body. His arms were wrapped around the middle, trying to alleviate the ache that his empty stomach was feeling. He moaned deliriously as he saw people who weren't there, their voices echoing around him.

"_Stanley, Stanley, Stanley. I wonder, how does it feel, to be the one who sent thirty lives to their watery graves?" taunted the dark-haired man with the snake-like grin. _

Stanley Dickenson shuddered as a wave of unbearable guilt and self-hatred swept through him. Fat tears leaked out of his eyes and dripped to the mattress _Those poor teenagers…_

"I'm so sorry," he rasped, his lips cracking. "I didn't want to do it but they made me, oh," he began to sob, rocking back and forth, "Please, _please_ forgive me…"

* * *

AN: Here it is, a rewrite for Stab My Back. I had the most horrible writer's block which finally went away. Phew. Thanks for reading and please review! I'd love to hear your thoughts!


	2. Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1

Date: 30th January  
Location: Tokyo, Japan

Emily walked down the streets of Harajuku, weaving expertly around the throngs of Japanese teenagers that milled about the area. She and the rest of the All Starz had arrived at the city of Tokyo the twenty-eighth, three days earlier than the date of the cruise so that Max could visit his Dad. The half-American and Rick were currently staying at Bakuten, half an hour away from Tokyo while the rest of the team stayed at a hotel. They were to meet up at on the cruise later on.

Bits of conversation floated from behind her just as she turned the corner.

"Eh, Mike, look at that!" Eddy exclaimed incredulously with a laugh. There was a pause before the boys burst into laughter at whatever it is that they were looking at.

"Who in their right mind would wear _that_?"

The bespectacled girl clenched her teeth, trying her best to ignore the two boys who were trailing after her, gawking and commenting on the oddly dressed teens around them. Thank goodness no one paid attention to their offensive comments, she thought irritably, or they'd probably get in trouble. Some of the clothes worn by the Japanese youngsters _were_ rather outlandish, but at least Emily had the decency to keep her thoughts to herself. Shaking her head, she stalked ahead.

She stopped outside a hobby shop, peering interestedly at the beyblade display. Hard metal system beyblades were arranged neatly on the shelf, polished to perfection as they shone under the afternoon sun. A sign sat behind them, written completely in Japanese, but Emily was willing to bet that they were proclaiming the power the beyblades held, neglecting to mention that they were difficult to control, especially for rookies. She had seen many bladers in the States that were lured by the promise of power and bought them, only to give up soon after.

"Hey, hey, Em," Michael said as he came to stand next to her, bending down to look at what she was looking at, whistling admiringly when he saw the blades. "Nice."

She turned her head to face him, "what?"

"Let's go to that café," he said, pointing to a shop further down the street, "We're kinda hungry," he added, giving her a sheepish lopsided grin, the corners of his pretty blue eyes crinkling. Beside him, Eddy nodded, rubbing his stomach.

"Mmm, alright," she mumbled. Emily spun on her heel and headed towards the café, called the Black Alice, ignoring the way her heart rate increased whenever Michael shot a smile her way.

.

"_Irashaimase_!" A bright, cheery voice greeted as soon as the All Starz walked into the café. It was a young woman, dressed in a black French maid costume. She smiled and bowed. The Americans inclined their heads awkwardly in response just as another girl approached them, yammering away in Japanese. She ushered them to a table by the window and presented them the menu. Michael opened it, only to stare at the foreign words.

"It's in Japanese," Eddy said, stating the obvious as he looked up to stare at his friends. "And there're no pictures."

"No, duh," Emily rolled her eyes.

"Can any of you read it?" Michael asked as his stomach rumbled. The other two shook their heads. The waitress, who had been hovering nearby spoke up with a concerned look on her face.

Emily looked at her thoughtfully. "From what little Japanese I know, I think she's asking if there's a problem."

"Tell her we don't understand the menu!" Eddy urged. Emily was quiet for a moment, thinking quickly, "I'll try."

She turned to the waitress. "Er_, watashi-tachi…_er_, wakaranai…_" She tapped the menu. Michael tried not to grin; it was amusing, not to mention rare, to see the redhead struggling with something. It made her seem human, like the rest of them. "…menu. _Eigo_ menu?" Emily added, a hopeful tone to her voice.

The girl's mouth fell open, a look of understanding dawning on her face. "_Chotto matte kudasai, eto,_" she raised an index finger, "one minute," she said. As she turned away, someone from the table next to the All Starz's intercepted her.

Michael sighed and turned to stare out the window as rapid-fire Japanese filled his ears. Sometimes being in a foreign country sucked.

.

A couple of minutes later, a Eurasian-looking girl about their age with approached their table, the waitress at her shoulder. Michael eyed her hair, wondering how she dyed the side-swept bangs in what looked like every colour of the rainbow. She looked vaguely familiar, he realised, but he couldn't place her. Emily had a small frown on her face. She took out her iPad from her satchel and began typing furiously away.

"Hi. So you guys need an interpreter?" She asked with a friendly grin.

"Yeah," Eddy answered. "Can you help us?" He gestured at the menu, a sheepish look on his face.

"Sure," she pulled it towards her and rattled off some of the items the café served. "I'd recommend the parfait," she said as the All Starz decided. "I just had it and it's _really good_."

Emily didn't look up from her tablet. "I think I'll have that," she told her. "I'm not that hungry anyway."

The girl nodded and passed the message on to the waitress. Michael had ramen and Eddy decided on omelette rice. "Anything else I can help you with?"

"Umm, no, I don't think so," Eddy replied, glancing uncertainly at the unusually quiet Emily. "Thanks a lot for your help!"

The girl laughed. "Nah, I should thank _you_," she said, leaning down, hand raised to cover her mouth in a conspiratorial manner. "I'm getting a free parfait out of this, so really, it's no problem."

"Glad to be of service," Michael said with a chuckle.

"Well, alright then, see you guys around." She gave them a small wave and strolled away to towards the back of the café, where she re-joined her friends. A brunette with thick black eyeliner at her table glanced in the All Starz's direction, making eye contact with Michael who was facing them. Her lips lifted into a tiny amused smirk as she looked away. She said something to the Japanese girl, who started to eat faster. Michael cringed as she heaped huge spoonfuls of ice cream in her mouth, rather reminiscent of Tyson. The group stood up as soon as she was done.

"Are they leaving?" Emily asked Michael who nodded. Emily twisted in her chair to watch them go, a calculating look on her face. He had an idea who the girls were now.

"What're you looking at?" Eddy followed their gaze. "Who're they?"

"The Kamikaze Girls." Michael and Emily answered in unison.

"Kamikaze Girls? Are they like, the girl version of the Blitzkrieg Boys?" Eddy guffawed at his own joke. Emily rolled her eyes. "Wait, are they in the tournament? And how come _I _haven't heard of them?"

"Yes they are, and because you were too busy watching basketball! Honestly, Eddy, are you sure you're a beyblader? Sometimes I wonder about your commitment to this team!" Emily ranted, throwing her hands up in the air. "You have to keep up with the news!"

Eddy scowled. Trust Emily to turn a simple answer into a nagging point. He made a face at Michael who ignored him. He actually agreed with her this time. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. So are they a threat or not?"

Unconsciously, Michael leaned forward, waiting for her answer. He hadn't seen the girls' stats, but he'd seen the way they bladed. It definitely was on par with the World Championship standards.

"They will be if you don't step up!"

Which, in Emily terms, meant that the All Starz could take them. Michael leaned back in his chair, feeling relieved and slightly silly to be worried over a girly team. Psh, we'll probably wipe the floor with the rookies and send them crying back home, he thought with a smirk.

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AN: Hey, I updated after a week! It's a record! I know it's a short chapter, but at least I can update faster…? XD Anyway, thanks for reading and let me know what you think! Any improvements, etc. :D


	3. Chapter 2

Firstly, thanks to these wonderful reviewers: Indigo Oblivion, MisstiqueRose and AquilaTempestas. You guys are awesome. :D

WARNING: Chapter contains OCs. Don't like, don't read, though it would be great if you gave it a try, who knows you might enjoy it. ;P

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CHAPTER 2

Date: 30th January

Location: Tokyo, Japan

"So Lena, what was the opposition like?" said one of the Kamikaze Girls, just as her teammate flopped into the chair across her. She was striking, with deep reddish-brown hair tied in a long thick braid and heavily lashed eyes, blue like the sky on a sunny day. Her skin was the colour of milky coffee that was typical of those of Middle Eastern descent. She stood out the most in the group, especially with her traditional garb; a long, loose mostly black dress, long-sleeved, with intricate embroidery in rich jewel tones. Small gold coins were stitched on the matching braided belt tied around her waist. "Do you think they recognised you?"

Lena nodded, brushing her multi-coloured bangs out of her eyes before pulling a tall parfait towards her and dipped a spoon in. The rest of her hair was a dirty blonde, twisted into a messy bun at the back of her head. "Pretty sure they did. Well, at least Emily does. I saw her looking at our stats on her iPad as soon as I came up." She lifted the spoon back out, eying the dripping chocolate sauce with happy satisfaction before popping it in her mouth.

"The All Starz _are_ known for their data collecting after all, so that's hardly surprising," Another girl spoke up as she folded up the sleeves of her blue plaid shirt. She had one of those quiet voices, difficult to catch even over the low hum of conversation in the café. She was the most normal looking one in the group, with a blonde chin-length bob and unassuming brown eyes.

"True," Lena replied through a mouthful of ice cream. "But still, we have to be careful later. I don't want them to know much about our styles before the tournament. Remember what I said about when we're on the cruise later-"

"'Don't battle to your full strengths'," the first girl interrupted, "'Try not to use our usual styles.'"

"'Make friends'," the blonde added. "'Find out the opponent's weakness.'"

"We _know_, Captain," they finished in unison.

Lena rolled her eyes,"Smartasses." And then she grinned.

Then, the final member of the Kamikaze Girls spoke up. She was dressed completely in black. "Guys, don't look now, but pretty boy's looking over at us," She smirked as she looked away from the All Starz's table, her heavily lined grey eyes amused. "You'd better hurry up, if you want to avoid talking to them," she told Lena, who began to shovel ice cream into her mouth at top speed.

"I didn't know blue-eyed blonds were your type, Melaina," the first girl said, a sly grin appearing on her lips.

"They're not," Melaina said drily as she picked apart a used napkin. "Just stating a fact, _Naz-reen_."

"Someone's in denial," Nazreen sang, sniggering as Melaina tossed the napkin at her. "Remember a certain Italian blader?" she said, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively. Lena sniggered into her parfait.

Melaina groaned. "How many times are you gonna bring that up? I told you, it was part of my strategy!"

"So you say. It looked pretty realistic to me," Nazreen replied, just to annoy her further.

Melaina shrugged, smirking smugly. "What can I say, I'm an excellent actress. And at least, _I_ won my match, which is more than I can say for you."

Nazreen gave a very unladylike snort. "At least _I_ didn't resort to underhanded tactics," she shot back.

Melaina scoffed, tossing her jet black hair over her shoulder as she examined her black nails. "Underhanded tactics? It's called exploiting the enemy's weakness. All's fair in love and war, hon."

As Nazreen opened her mouth to retort, Lena set her glass with a loud thud.

"That's enough you two. Let's go." She stood up, paid and headed towards the exit. Nazreen settled for making a face at Melaina, who rolled her eyes in response before hurrying after their captain, the blonde at the back of the group.

x

The girls wandered the streets for about an hour, taking in the sights, until…

"Hey guys, mind if I duck into this store for a second? I wanna get some new clothes." Nazreen said, pointing to a store ahead. "I'm not going around in this," she tugged at her dress, "any longer." She added, tired of being stopped for pictures by the Japanese and tourists alike, who were interested in the exotic clothes she wore.

"Really, Naz? I thought you enjoyed having your picture taken," Melaina snarked. "Since you were parading around in that and all."

Nazreen scowled. "Oh shut up." She grumbled as she stomped towards the store.

Lena waved them ahead. "You guys go on first, I spy with my little eye, a takoyaki stand!" she said in a sing-song voice, starting eagerly towards the small stall further down the street. Melaina shook her head at her friend's bottomless pit of a stomach and moved to follow Nazreen into the store.

"You coming, Nikola?" Lena called out over her shoulder, knowing that the blonde didn't like shopping. Nikola didn't reply; hands stuffed in her jeans pockets, she trailed after her.

x

After placing her order, the half-Japanese stood by the side, watching as the stall keeper flipped the cooking takoyaki with a skewer stick. Nikola moved to stand next to her, taking a step back when the heat from the pan started to warm her already sweaty face. Lena took her box of octopus balls, one hand rooting through the pocket of her dark blue cardigan for some change. She paid the man, thanked him and the pair began walking back. They sat on a bench outside the store in companiable silence, watching people walk pass by.

"This is so good!" Lena said happily as she ate one. Nikola gave her a sidelong glance.

"You sound like you've never eaten takoyaki before," she commented at the look on Lena's face.

"Yeah, well," she poked a skewer into another ball, "It's been a while since I've had takoyaki, so," she shrugged, as if that explained everything.

"How long since you've been back to Japan?"

"Uh, a long time, I guess? I've been living in Europe since I was really small. I don't really remember. Want one?" Lena offered the box. Nikola eyed the greasy balls of dough and shook her head.

"No thanks."

"Oh come on, try it!"

"It smells funny."

"It's just the bonito flakes. They taste good, I swear!"

The Swiss wrinkled her nose. "…No."

"Fine. Your loss."

"Mhmm."

"You're so unadventurous."

"Whatever," Nikola deadpanned, rolling her eyes. She reached out to pull at her shirt which was stuck to her sweaty back and wondered how Lena could stand the heat in her cardigan-skirt-tights combination.

"Do you think they'll be done anytime soon?" Lena wondered, setting the now empty box aside.

Nikola scoffed. "With Melaina inside? I don't think so."

Lena puffed out her cheeks and leaned back on her palms. "I guess we'll be here for a while huh?"

"Looks like it."

Lena looked at her from the corner of her eye, a mischievous look in her eye. "Wanna play a game to pass the time?"

X

Melaina was in heaven. The store Nazreen picked sold really cute clothes, she thought as she wandered around the store. For someone who lived in the dessert, she sure had good taste in clothing. She went over to what seemed to be the on sale section, and in the middle of the pile, she spotted a really cute black denim skirt. As she reached out for the black denim skirt, another hand shot out for it. They both grabbed it at the same time. Melaina turned to scowl at the other girl, a very familiar blond-brunette who had a similar expression on her face.

"Hey, aren't you one of the Kamikaze Girls?" Julia Fernandez asked, green eyes narrowed in a glare.

Her tone didn't sit right with Melaina. "So what if I am?" she lifted her chin challengingly.

"So you need to give up this super cute skirt to me."

Melaina raised an eyebrow, "And why is that?"

"Cos I'm obviously the better blader," she replied snidely, giving Melaina a once over, looking unimpressed. "So you have to give in to me."

Melaina had to admit, albeit grudgingly, that she was right. Julia was definitely one of the stronger competitors but of course, she wasn't going to let her know that. "You're only better cos my team wasn't in the previous competition," she retorted, gripping the skirt tighter.

"Pft, you wish, honey. My team was in the top three last year and where were you? I bet you guys didn't even pass the freaking qualifiers!"

"For your information, we didn't even compete last year!"

"Duh, cos you weren't good enough!"

"Grr, what did you say?"

"I said, you suck! Are you deaf now, poser?"

"Poser? That's it! You're going down!"

Electricity buzzed between the two girls as they whipped out their launchers, ignoring the cries of the distraught shopkeeper.

"What's going on?" Nazreen demanded, dropping the clothes in her arms as she ran over to them. She gaped when she saw Melaina, launcher out to battle with Julia Fernandez, of all people in the middle of a store.

"Butt out, Naz. This is between me and her."

"Yeah, butt out," Julia echoed, not moving her eyes from Melaina's. "That skirt's mine!"

"Wait, you guys are fighting over a skirt? Seriously?" The disbelief in the redhead's voice would be comical if not for the situation.

"It's not just about the skirt!" Melaina protested. "She insulted us too!"

"Yeah, probably after you insulted her," Nazreen muttered under her breath. "And where is this skirt?" she asked loudly, curious to see the skirt that had the girls fighting.

"That one!" Melaina jerked her head towards the pile.

"I don't see any skirts," Nazreen said, "Just a bunch of shirts."

"Are you blind? It's ther- Wait, where is it?"

"It's not there anymore!" Julia wailed, her arm falling limp by her side.

"Wait, was it a black skirt? Denim?"

"Yeah!"

"I think that girl just bought it," Nazreen pointed at a girl exiting the store. The doorbell jingled merrily as the door swung shut behind her.

"…"

* * *

AN: Soooooo. Long time, no see huh? Sorry for the long wait, this chapter refused to be written properly. This was like, the fifth rewrite or something, so hopefully it was enjoyable enough. I know nothing much is happening, but I just wanted to give a brief introduction of the OCs. Let me know what you guys think of the Kamikaze Girls. Like, dislike, hate (MARYSUE! –le gasp-). Any feedback would be great. ;)

Next chapter will probably be up within the next two weeks and will feature our favourite Russians, the Wraith Knights and maybe the White Tigers as well, so look out for it!


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